Meet Our Guides

Malachi Anderson is from Cañon City, Colorado. He is currently in his fourth summer of guiding at Journey Quest! He loves guiding on the river and later hopes to pursue a career in welding and ministry, potentially overseas. His interests include Scripture, Star Wars, and Lord of the Rings, among other things. He loves traveling and going on adventures, especially after traveling the world as a missionary for nine months.

Last year, the Lord taught Malachi a lot about leadership, the complexities that come with it, and how to keep Jesus at the center of a very busy life. Over the course of this summer, he looks forward to getting to minister to those who come to Journey Quest and seeing the ways that the Lord shines through each one of them.

Brogan is from Kalispell, Montana, and is stoked to be on staff with Journey Quest for the first time! He loves the outdoors and is super exited to share the gospel and have deep conversations with guests. Brogan will start his first year at Grand Canyon University in the fall to work toward his major in education. Brogan cannot wait to see what God has in store for the summer and beyond!

Lilly is new to Journey Quest this summer and is ecstatic to be here! She grew up in the Midwest, out in the countryside near a town called Platteville, Wl. After coming to Canon City last fall for Worldview Crux, a gap year program that focuses on Theology, Philosophy, and Literature, Lilly fell in love with the Colorado landscape. She couldn’t pass up the opportunity to spend the summer enjoying the beautiful nature God created and serving Christ through adventures. She loves the aspect of connection with Journey Quest, both with the community of her fellow guides and with her crews as they float down the Arkansas River. It’s her joy to reach people through conversation, keeping the desire to show Jesus’ love and compassion at the center of their discussions. Outside of rafting, hiking, and exploring the vast outdoors, Lilly loves to read and write, spend time with friends and family, perform in plays and musicals, discover new coffee shops, musicians, and farmers markets, and take as many side quests as possible! She is excited for Christ to grow her in confidence, strength, and leadership this summer! After Journey Quest, Lilly intends to move to Canon City where she hopes to eventually RA with Worldview Crux and then start a homestead near the mountains. She can’t wait to see you out on the river!

Kaila is super excited to be joining Journey Quest for her first summer! She grew up in Arizona while visiting Montana often. She has always loved the outdoors and is eager to share God’s beautiful creation with other people! Kaila just graduated from high school and will be attending Cornerstone University in Grand Rapids, Michigan, where she will be majoring in Missionary Aviation while competing in basketball and track. Her long term goal is to work for a heliskiing company as a pilot while also doing some skiing herself. Outside of school, Kaila loves anything active or adrenaline-filled including basketball, skiing, volleyball, surfing, track, and videography. This summer, she desires to get to know God on a deeper level, take on challenges while learning new things, and cultivate meaningful relationships. Kaila is looking forward to seeing how God moves through the Journey Quest community and continues to grow her this summer!

Strider Aston is from Gilbert, Arizona, where he grew up as the oldest of 5 kids. He is currently a student at Grand Canyon University, majoring in Christian Studies with an emphasis on Philosophy. He is also a Division I javelin thrower for the GCU Track and Field Team. Growing up, he spent a lot of time skiing and mountaineering in Montana. After high school he served as a volunteer missionary for 6 months with YWAM in New Zealand, Australia, and Fiji. In his free time he enjoys reading, playing worship on guitar, and learning new tricks on his Kendama. He loves spending time with his friends and family and getting into all kinds of mischief with his brothers and cousins especially. This is his second year at Journey Quest, and he hopes to grow in both his relationship with Christ as well as with guests, guides, and those he encounters on the river alike. He is extremely excited to see how God continues to move both on and off the river this summer.

This is Phoenix’s first summer at Journey Quest!! He’s originally from Oklahoma but lived most of his life in Texas until moving to Cañon City this spring. He graduated high school from Aledo High School (Aledo, TX) in 2024 and was very active in FFA showing cattle. He’s enrolled at Colorado Mountain College in Leadville, Colorado, for the fall to get his Associates Degree in Outdoor Recreation Leadership. Phoenix is very excited about rafting and the challenges that it will present. He has been a backpacking guide the past two summers here in Colorado and has climbed 7 different 14ers! He absolutely loves being outdoors and being in God’s creation. Phoenix is excited to share that love with the groups he comes in contact with through Journey Quest. He loves the Lord and helping others see the beauty He has given us through the great outdoors. He really enjoys helping people realize they can do more than they think they can. It’s all about the mental game. Most of us want to give up on a challenge sooner than we should. Don’t give up, just keep putting one foot in front of the other and you will be surprised what you can do! “I can do all things through Christ who gives me strength.” (Philippians 4:13) Phoenix can’t wait to see what this summer has to offer! He hopes to see you on the water!!

Laura Jane Moody is from Long Island, New York. This is her second year at Journey Quest! She is a student at Baylor University, majoring in the University Scholars program and studying Creative Writing, Scripture, and Spanish. After college, she hopes to take all that she has learned and go overseas as a missionary, continuing to tell people about Jesus and His love for them. She enjoys traveling, reading, writing, going on adventures, and telling people about Jesus. 

During her last season at Journey Quest, the Lord taught her to rely on Him for strength and endurance. She hopes that God will continue to lead her closer to Him this summer, teach her about spiritual leadership, and help her grow in the areas of discipleship and communication. Her favorite part of working at Journey Quest is all the different ways the Lord brings people into her life–from her fellow guides to the crews she gets to take down the river. This is a wonderful community and is such a blessing in her life!

Guiding for her third season with Journey Quest, Annabelle is thrilled to be returning to a summer gig that allows her to use the outdoors as a platform for ministry, fellowship, and spiritual growth. She enjoys asking thoughtful questions, participating in deep conversations, and listening to different perspectives. Her hope is that every time she goes down the river she or someone in her crew returns with a new bit of wisdom, a clearer understanding of God, or a better understanding of truth. 

Annabelle comes from a homeschool family of eleven children. Having grown up in Cañon City, she is grateful for the opportunity to experience her home state in an exciting way each summer on the river.  In her spare time, she enjoys reading, hanging with the other guides or close friends, visiting coffee shops, hanging around at climbing gyms, swing dancing, or daydreaming. Over the off season, Annabelle attends Colorado State University in Pueblo. She will graduate with her bachelor’s degree in social work in the spring of 2026; after this, she hopes to return to school the next fall for her master’s degree and eventually become a licensed clinical therapist.

Ethan German grew up in central California where he discovered his love for the outdoors. He lived in the country and the mountains and always found excuses to climb trees or camp with his buddies. Living in the great outdoors taught him to respect God’s creation and find beauty in the little things.

After working at Journey Quest last year, Ethan is back and ready for another season. He enjoys the challenge and simplicity of life here—being outside, working hard, and living with purpose. He sees getting away from California air as a win, and being surrounded by God’s creation is one of his favorite things.

Outside of work, Ethan enjoys anything that involves friends and being outside. He likes frisbee, hiking, and a good nap. His focus this season is to keep his eyes on the Lord, stay steady in tough moments, and serve in a way that honors God.

Gillian is beyond excited to return for her second season at Journey Quest! Since her first time whitewater rafting, Gillian has dreamed of being a guide. She’s so excited to have the opportunity to be on the water while pointing people toward the Living Water. She is from Grand Rapids, Michigan, where she studies nursing at Cornerstone University. After she finishes nursing school, her dream is that God will open doors to allow her to go into medical missions. Gillian loves spending time with friends and family doing anything active in God’s beautiful creation! This summer she is excited for God to grow her in spiritual leadership and teach her how to completely rely on Him in every circumstance. Gillian cannot wait to spend time enjoying creation and building relationships with guests and other guides!